Fire-bucket support.



M. A. STEWART.

I'IRFBUGKET SUPPORT.

APPLIOATION FILED we. 11, 1909.

1,027,011. 'PatentedMay21,l912.

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WITNESSES w Inn gm v "T COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 60.. WASHINGTON. n. c.

A roswer.

UNITED STATES PATENT oEEioE.

MATTHEW A; STEWART, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

FIRE-BUCKET SUPPORT.

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MA THEW A. STEW- ART, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain Improvements in Fire-Bucket Supports, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to fire buckets or pails such as are commonly hung in factories and the like and are supposed to be kept full of water ready for use in case of a fire breaking out. It will be understood that it is of great importance that these buckets be always full of water and ready in case of an emergency, and especially so because fire insurance companies strictly insist upon it.

The objects of this invention are to provide a support for such fire buckets which shall give warning when the water in the bucket falls too low, as through evaporation or the like; to secure a simple and inexpensive construction which can be cheaply and easily installed, and is not likely to get out of order; to enable the alarm point of the apparatus to be adjusted to different heights of water in the bucket; to secure a support in which the alarm means shall not interfere with hanging up the bucket or quickly and easily taking it down; to positively prevent the buckets from becoming empty or too low when standing unused, and to obtain other advantages and results as may be brought out in the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in each of the several figures, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a fire bucket mounted upon the support of my improved construction, said support be ing adapted for a horizontal surface; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 33 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow.

In said drawings, indicates the foot of my improved support adapted to stand upon a horizontal surface as shown and having marginal slots 11, or the equivalent, to receive fastening screws 12. From said foot 10 a standard 13 extends upward and bends forward at its upper end, over the foot 10, to provide a hook 14; for the bail 15 of a fire bucket 16. From the under side of said hook 14 a guide rod 17 depends Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 11, 1909.

Serial No. 512,304.

vertically, said guide rod being preferably cross-shaped or star-shaped in cross section, as shown in Fig. 3, to reduce the friction at its sides. The said guide rod 17 is adapted to enter the tubular neck 18 of a float 1.9 which is adapted to rest upon the water in the fire bucket 16. Said float may be of any suitable material or construction to obtain the desired buoyancy, and its said neck 18 has a radial projection which in the drawings is shown as a flange 20 at the top of the neck.

An arm 21 is provided upon the support or its standard 13, and which arm projects sufficiently adjacent to the neck 18 of the float to engage the top flange 20 thereof when the float lowers by reason of the evaporation of the water in the fire bucket. Said arm 21 and flange 20 are then connected, as by wires 22, 23, with a battery 24 and an electric bell 25, so that by insulating the arm 21 the circuit is completed and the bell rung when a contact is made. Thus if the water gets too low in the bucket 16, an alarm is given and the supply can be replenished.

In the drawings I have shown the arm 21 asadjustable upon a cross piece 26 of the support, said cross piece being slotted as at 27 and a bolt 28 passed through said slot and the arm 21, said bolt having a head 29 at one end and a wing nut 30 at the other. Insulation is secured by providing a fiber sleeve 31 on the bolt 28 within the slot 27 and washers 32, 33 at the opposite ends thereof. Obviously different means of insulation, or different ways of adjusting the arm 21, or indeed no adjustment whatever, could be employed without departing from the. spirit and scope of my invention. Furthermore, the circuit wires 22, 23 might extend to any number of fire bucket supports in the same factory or building, and the one battery and alarm bell suffice for all, being arranged at any convenient point.

By my invention I provide a fire bucket support with alarm device in which the movable contacting parts which make and break the circuit are protected from the evaporation of water or other fluid in the bucket so that such parts will not rust and stick and the support become inoperative so far as the alarm is concerned. For instance, in the construction shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 the tubular neck 18 of the float receives and protects the guide rod 17. Thus evapo- Patented May 21, 1912.

ration from the pail Will not dampen the slidably engaging parts so as to cause them to rust and stick which might render the device inoperative.

Having thus described the invention, What I claim is:

A support for fire buckets comprising a body portion having means for attachment to a Wall or the like, said body portion having a hook to receive the hail of a bucket and a guide rod projecting downward therefrom,- a float having a stem socketed from the top adapted to receive said guide rod and protect the same from evaporation from the bucket, electrical contacts adapted to be connected and disconnected by the lowering and rising of said float, circuit Wires secured to said electric contacts, a source of electric energy, and an alarm adapted to be operated by the current passing'through the circuit.

MATTHEW A. STEWVART.

In the presence of STERLING PIERsoN, RUSSELL M. EVERETT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

